When I first put out the call for the Winter 2022 issue of Easy Weaving with Little Looms with the theme “Weaving Words,” I had a feeling I’d probably get a one or two submissions that took the theme literally. Lucky me—I was right! I received two incredible submissions showcasing two very different ways of creating bands with writing on them.
First let’s look at Sara C. Bixler’s Charlotte’s Bands, which you can see in the photo at the top. Sara could have easily gone with a simple, blocky type of writing but decided instead to make it more elegant with a serif font that looks like it leapt right out of a book. For her letters—and adorable spiders!—Sara used the Baltic pick-up technique, which in this case required only one pick-up stick. If you’re a beginning bandweaver wanting to learn how to add letters to your weaving, this is an excellent starting point, and I’m sure intermediate and advanced weavers will find much to love in these Charlotte’s Web–inspired bands!
Alison Irwin’s Follow Your Star Bookmarks.
Next are Alison Irwin’s Follow Your Star Bookmarks, which grace the cover of the issue. As Sara did with her bands, Alison eschewed blocky lettering and instead gave her alphabet jaunty angles. When I first saw these bands, I was immediately reminded of the Norse runic alphabet. It’s playful while also feeling very classic. What’s also interesting is how these bands were woven. Alison used pebble weave, a technique found most often in backstrap weaving, and needed two shed sticks and a pick-up stick to weave these beautiful bands. If you’re brand new to bandweaving, consider this a project to aspire to rather than starting with. If you’re more experienced, this project is an excellent way to challenge yourself and weave up something truly spectacular.
What both these bands have in common is that once you get the hang of the technique used, you can write anything you want in your weaving. They’re my favorite kind of project: one that teaches you a skill that can be applied elsewhere.
Also, if you didn’t know already, these pick-up charts are all available right here so you can print, enlarge, and mark off rows as you weave to your heart’s content.
Happy Weaving!
Christina